Reinforcements as a result of the raised terror threat level
The Swedish Police Authority is strengthening its counter-terrorism work in several areas. This is a result of the Swedish Security Service raising the level of terrorist threats targeting Sweden.
“We have been working for a long time on enhancing our abilities and we have a robust capacity in all necessary areas. These reinforcements should be seen as additional building blocks in this work,” says National Police Commissioner Anders Thornberg.
These measures are:
Increased operational cooperation with the Swedish Security Service
The Swedish Police Authority is intensifying support to and operational cooperation with the Swedish Security Service.
Enhanced cooperation within RedEx
The Swedish Police Authority’s cooperation with the Swedish Security Service to combat violent extremism is now being enhanced with additional staff at national and regional level to disrupt and reduce the ability of groups and individuals to carry out terrorist attacks. These activities are crime prevention activities.
Increased dialogue
The foundation of the Swedish Police Authority’s work to prevent extremism and terrorism is the active outreach work that takes place in the local police districts through community police officers, municipality police officers and dialogue police officers and the continual reporting of intelligence. This work will be intensified.
Increased internet surveillance and cyber capacity
By improving our capacity, we will increase the chances of identifying and taking action against radicalised individuals and actors who seek to affect critical infrastructure through cyber attacks.
Intensified border checks
Cooperation with Swedish Customs, the Swedish Coast Guard and the Swedish Security Service is being enhanced. The Swedish Police Authority will increase the number of checks at the borders and in areas close to the borders. Increased video surveillance, searches of premises and body searches will be used when there is reason to do so.
Intensified cooperation with organisers and other actors involved in public events and public gatherings
This is being done in order to supplement the Police’s situational understanding concerning events with large visitor/audience numbers.
Facts
The Police is society’s primary resource for intervening in the event of a terrorist attack or any other attack involving serious and considerable violence. The Swedish Police Authority can also conduct a preliminary investigation in the event of a terrorist attack and support the Swedish Security Service by investigating and carrying out surveillance against individuals suspected of preparing terrorist attacks. This work is based on the Swedish counter-terrorism strategy.